


Wrap it Up

by SilverMalkin



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Banter, Christmas Shopping, Friendship, Not Romance, Other, fluff?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-21
Updated: 2018-12-21
Packaged: 2019-09-24 09:15:12
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,311
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17097803
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilverMalkin/pseuds/SilverMalkin
Summary: Mokuba and the Reader are on a quest to find Seto's Christmas gift!





	Wrap it Up

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [In Keeping With Kaiba](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15914817) by [SilverMalkin](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilverMalkin/pseuds/SilverMalkin). 



> This is a scene that could have taken place in between the events of my other fanfiction but hopefully it also stands alone.

The air was still and quiet. Every now and then a fat snowflake would float down, covering the area in growing mounds. It was serene and picturesque-- quite a contrast to the crowd of people swirling in front of you, all trying to escape the train station and get to their destinations as quickly as possible.

You scuffed your boots against the ground and lit the clock on your phone. 18:24. For a kid with a bunch of fancy watches, Mokuba was pretty late. You were just wondering if re-wrapping your scarf to a warmer configuration would be worth the loss in already-retained heat when you spotted him through the crowd. 

He looked a little childish in an oversized coat, knitted cap, and mittens. "Sorry I'm late," he said when he reached you. 

"You're not fooling me. Even though we meet at the train station I know you travel by car. You can't claim to have missed your train."

"It was hard to get away from Seto," he said huffily. "I had to say that I was going to buy his Christmas present."

"But we are buying his present," you said.

"Yeah, but I didn't want to _tell_ him that." Mokuba shoved his hands into his pockets and breathed into the front of his coat. "Come on, let's get going. Do you want to eat first?"

You fell into step next to him. "No thank you, Mokuba. I've learned your tricks and have already eaten," you said archly.

He spared you a suspicious glance. "Really. Are you certain you don't want to eat," he stopped and gestured wildly at the store in front, "crepes?"

"No, Mokuba. You're not buying me dinner again."

"Not even," he whirled around sharply to point at another shop, "specialty apple pies?"

"If you're hungry, you can go ahead and eat, but I promise you that I'm fine." 

Mokuba pouted. "Fine, then let's just get to the shopping center."

"What are you going to get Seto? He seems really hard to buy a present for. What do you get for a guy that has his own designer jet?" 

"You're right. Anything he thinks he needs he either buys right away or makes himself. I was hoping that some regular stores would have something he wouldn't have thought about." 

"So you're saying you have no clue." You held open the door to the shopping center for him.

He smiled at you brightly. "Why do you think you're here?" He led you over to the coin lockers where you stored your winter gear.

You unwound your scarf. "What makes you think that I would have any idea what Seto wants?"

"You just have a different perspective, that's all." He closed his locker.

"Because I'm poor?"

Mokuba pointed in the opposite direction. "Look, a menswear store. Let's start over there," he said, rushing off.

You followed behind as Mokuba blazed the way through store after store. You tried to help, at first, but after a few blatantly incorrect suggestions Mokuba stopped listening to you. Well, perhaps it had been unfair of you to suggest a whetstone for Seto's tongue.

Mokuba's mood deteriorated gradually until he was snapping at shop attendants. At this you started to drag him over to the kids' play area, telling him that if he was going to be childish about it that it was where he belonged.

He threw himself onto a bench. You sat down as well, but he half-turned away from you. "Let's just take a break and think about it a little more," you said placatingly, but he didn't respond. "We've looked at clothing, accessories, tech gadgets, books, jewelry, hobby stores, home goods, practically everything. And nothing has seemed quite right?"

"Nothing's up to his standards," said Mokuba finally. "I know this place is a little under-budget, but I thought it would have something _different_ than the stuff he already has."

You watched some kids run by. "What have you gotten him in the past?"

"It always felt weird using Seto's money to buy him a Christmas present, so I usually made him things. But now that I'm legitimately making my own money I want to get him something."

"If it's so hard that it's gotten you in a mood, why don't you just have your assistant choose a present?"

Mokuba turned to you, outraged. "No way. Seto always chooses my gift personally. I'm not going to put this on someone else."

Feeling slightly put-upon, you hummed contemplatively. "Well, if we can't find a physical gift, why not an experience of some sort?"

"An experience?"

"He's under a lot of stress, so maybe like a massage?"

Mokuba grimaced comically. "Yeah, I'm sure Seto would love to have a stranger touch him."

You crossed your arms. "Skiing? A cruise? A Paris vacation?"

"Nah," Mokuba shrugged. "We do that stuff all the time for no reason. It doesn't scream 'present.'"

You put on a fake, haughty expression, "We do that stuff all the time, mni mni mnii," you mocked. "Excuse me for not thinking bougie enough." 

"Hey," said Mokuba. He shoved you lightly. "I don't sound like that, but you might be onto something..." he paused, gazing into the distance. 

From experience, you knew that it was best to let Mokuba's reverie run its course. An aroma caught your attention and you had a sudden, wicked thought. You slipped away and a few moments later returned to your bench with a couple of warm meat buns. "Here," you said faintly, holding out a bun for him. Just as you hoped, he accepted what you handed him automatically without breaking his trance. He even began to eat. You stifled your victorious laughter and ate your own bun. 

Mokuba finished his bun, crumpled the paper it was in and was dropping it into your outstretched hand before he finally focused his eyes on what was happening. "Wait, what? No," he said as you stood to throw away your trash. "That's not how this works, you don't buy food for me."

You just smiled brightly. "Merry Christmas."

"Ugh, no, that's my thing-"

"So," you interrupted, "did you come up with anything for Seto?"

"Ah, yeah!" He smiled widely. "It's going to be amazing."

"What is it?"

"Oh, no," he said with a sneer. "You're going to get payback. You'll have to wait to find out."

You frowned. "There's no way you dragged me out here, marched me through the whole shopping center, and ignored me for fifteen minutes just to not tell me what you're giving Seto for Christmas."

"Okay, okay," he caved, clearly too excited to keep it secret. "I'm going to find the most run-down, underprivileged orphanage in the city and then renovate it in Seto's name. It's going to be a complete overhaul with all of KaibaCorp's newest tech."

"Wow. That sounds really cool. But doesn't KaibaCorp already do something similar?" 

"Well, we do usually have a toy-drive where underprivileged kids, including orphans, get a chance to have KC games, but this is more involved and personal."

"You're so smart, Mokuba. I would have never thought about that."

"Well," he said, scratching his cheek, "I couldn't have done it without you. If you hadn't been here to check my temper, I wouldn't have had the chance to watch the kids play." He gestured towards the playset that several children were climbing on while their mothers watched. He stood tall and placed a hand over his heart dramatically. "You inspire me."

"Obviously," you replied, just as affectedly. "Now, about my present, I'd like to talk about that vacation to Paris you said was too mundane."

Mokuba's gaze drifted away. "Aha, well, about that, I, uh, aaaalready have your present."

"Do you?" You peered at him, leaning to put yourself back into his field of vision. 

"Yeeeesss, it's...." He turned and sprinted away from you.

"Hey!"


End file.
